First Christmas
by momoxtoshiro
Summary: "Instead of fretting over what I've missed out on in the past, why don't you show me a future to look forward to?" [Happy RWBY Tuesday! And a very Merry Christmas!]


**Ahh, at long last! I wrote this last month and it's finally time! I do hope you enjoy! Merry Christmas to all!**

**Dedicated to Ash, Angie, Hiro, Marie, and Kelly!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY.**

* * *

First Christmas

"Ugh. This is a nightmare..."

"Oh, come on, princess! I thought you _liked_ the cold."

"Why does _everyone_ like to assume that?"

Weiss was seated in her bed, leaning back against her pillow with her knees pulled to her chest. The blankets were wrapped around her pitiful form, and Yang had even felt bad enough for her to relinquish her own comforters, which Weiss begrudgingly did not refuse.

The heiress clasped a mug of hot tea in her trembling hands, hardly having drunk any of it for fear the mug would grow cold again if she did. She even wore different sleepwear than usually, trading her ice-blue nightgown for a thick, red sweater and a long, loose skirt.

Naturally, Yang had made fun of her for wearing such an "old-fashioned" thing to bed, but Weiss had retaliated with comments about Yang's pajamas being no better than swimwear. Yet, even though she had covered herself down to her feet, Weiss still shivered.

"Wow." Yang whistled. "If anyone could see how the Ice-Queen-Snow-Angel _really_ reacts to the cold, I'm sure they'd faint."

"Like I said," Weiss huffed. "Not _once_ did I ever say I had a particular fondness for the cold weather. Evidently, the entire school just made their own assumptions..."

"Guess so." Yang shrugged. "And you know what happens when you assume-"

"Yang." Blake finally spoke up from her own bed in order to stop another of her girlfriend's poorly-situated comments.

"Okay, okay." Yang refrained from finishing the joke. "Anyways, I think it's about time for bed."

"Do you want this back?" Weiss nodded to the extra blanket on her lap.

"Nah, keep it." Yang held up her hand. "I'll just sleep with Blake tonight."

"As if that's any different from any other night." The Faunus rolled her eyes playfully as she put away her book.

Weiss grimaced as she watched the pair slide into bed together before casting her gaze back toward the door where it had been focused for the past hour. Yang's naturally high body temperature served to keep the room fairly warm during the cold winter nights, but Weiss still shivered.

"Weiss," Yang sighed. "Chill out. She'll be back soon."

"But why has she been late _every night_ for the past _two weeks_?" The heiress demanded.

As she had said, Ruby had been visiting team JNPR's room across the hallway for the past fourteen nights. It had irked Weiss enough the entire first week when she would hound her girlfriend with questions and demand explanations Ruby never gave. But when it had gone on for over ten days now, Weiss's frustration was beginning to transform into worry.

"Weiss, calm down." Yang repeated herself. "Why are you so worked up about this?"

"There are plenty of reasons!" Weiss huffed. "First of all, she won't give us any decent explanations, just lame excuses I would only ever imagine coming from _you_." Yang opened her mouth indigently, but closed it when she realized Weiss was right, and the heiress continued. "Plus, she's got her own room and her own team, doesn't she? So why does she feel the need to sneak around with that bunch? And another thing-"

"Allow me to explain." Blake cut in meaningfully. "She's worried that Ruby's cheating on her."

"Wha-?!" Weiss's voice rose a pitch into a shriek. "N-No, I just-"

"_Ooooh_." Yang smirked as she peeked over Blake's shoulder to stare tauntingly at the heiress. "I see how it is. You're really dumb enough to think Ruby would cheat on you with Jaune?" She laughed. Weiss's face was rose-red and she could not remember how to form words. "Haha, oh, Weiss, you're so cute."

"_Silence_!" Weiss screeched.

"Now, just let me get this straight." Yang continued to add to the heiress's chagrin. "You think Ruby -who tells you she loves you every day and kisses you every night and makes you tea and hugs you all night to keep you warm- would cheat on you with someone who already has a girlfriend on his own team and while said girlfriend _is in the same room_?"

Now that the scenario had been laid bare before her, Weiss did recognize the preposterous nature of it all. She closed her mouth, sniffing once as she took another dainty sip of her tea as she waited for her blush to die away.

"Still..." She mumbled. "She could at least tell me what she's doing..."

"Awww, this is just too precious." Yang chuckled.

"Perhaps we should tell Ruby just how concerned she's making you, Weiss." Blake sent her own, more subtle attack.

"Don't you dare!" Weiss barked. "And besides, I'm not concerned about her ch...cheating on me," it hurt to say the word, but she persevered. "I'm just worried that she's shirking her responsibilities as the leader of this team."

"You know, princess, sometimes you're so stubborn that it sucks the fun out of teasing you." Yang sighed.

Weiss scrunched her nose indifferently, but said nothing more.

She was painfully aware of her two teammates getting comfortable in the bed beside hers, and Weiss tried to drown out the blissful sighs and soft giggles by loudly sipping at her tea.

Yang had to admit she felt bad for the heiress, huddled up and cold all by herself as she stared at the door like a faithful dog awaiting her owner's return. Blake must have felt just as guilty, because she turned around and murmured to Yang, "Just say something to her."

"It's not like she'll listen, but..." Yang muttered before sending her voice across the room. "Weiss, seriously. Stop worrying. She'll be back soon."

"Not soon enough..."

The heiress's dejected tone was pitiable enough to almost have Yang crack and tell her what she knew about her sister's activities. But Blake nudged her gently in order to stop her.

"It's fine." She whispered. "I know it's hard to watch, but isn't it also kind of sweet?"

"...Yeah." The blonde agreed amusedly. "You're right."

Weiss did not need to call them out on it to know Yang and Blake were fully aware of what Ruby was doing in their neighboring team's room every evening. She had suspected for quite some time that their feigning innocence had been all an act, but she had not bothered to demand being told what they knew and so smugly kept secret.

What in the world was so important that Ruby could tell her other teammates, tell _another team,_ but not her own partner?

Weiss felt more and more miserable as the evenings of secrecy went on, and she was not sure how much longer she would be able to keep this up; how could she be certain that Ruby's kisses were true?

Weiss returned to the beginning of her worrying roller coaster and dropped down the spiral to despair yet again. _It's because I haven't been the best teammate like I promised I would. She gives me so much, and I never reciprocate... _

However, before she could reach rock bottom and start wallowing in her grief, the door clicked open.

Ruby was just calling out a "Goodnight, you guys!" over her shoulder when Weiss straightened up immediately.

"Hey, sis." Yang waved. "Welc-"

"_Ruby Rose_!" Weiss's voice drowned her out as she slammed her half empty mug onto the bedside table, causing Ruby to nearly fall over. "Where have you _been_?!"

"Whoa, full names..." Yang whispered.

Ruby fumbled for words. "I-I was just-"

"No excuses this time!" Weiss snapped, throwing the blankets off herself and standing. "I want the truth! What exactly have you been doing over there for the past two weeks? And I don't want to hear "strategical meetings" again!"

"Weiss, calm down!" Ruby pressed her finger to her lips. "I was just-"

"Don't tell me to calm down!" Weiss stomped her foot in a manner that displayed her displeasure. Then, her fists unclenched and the warmth drained from her fingers. "I... I worry about you, you know..."

"W...Worry? About _me_?" The brunette parroted.

"Yes!" Weiss cried. "Don't make me say it again, you dunce!"

"Weiss, I'm sorry," Ruby's furrowed eyebrows portrayed how guilty she felt. "But I just can't tell you yet-"

"What?" The heiress felt her eyes begin to sting. "What is it you can't tell me, exactly? What's so important that you can tell the rest of Beacon, but not your own partner?"

"Okay!" Yang sat up from beside Blake. "Let's all just chill out."

Weiss snarled and sent her an icy glare. Yang swallowed and fell silent. Blake rolled her eyes before taking charge instead.

"Ruby." The Faunus girl directed her attention to her leader. "You see, Weiss is just worried-"

"Say one more word and I'll turn those ears of yours inside out, Belladonna."

"-that you might be cheating on her." Blake finished stubbornly.

"BLAKE!" Weiss made a lunge toward the bed as Blake ducked behind Yang. Weiss was willing to maul either one of them at this point, but she halted when she heard Ruby speak.

"What?!" She cried. "Weiss, is that true?" She reached out to grab hold of her girlfriend's wrist, sparing her other two teammates from her wrath. Weiss was trembling, but not from the cold this time, her face pink and her eyes watering as she bit the inside of her cheek.

"Well, w-what am I supposed to think, you dunce?!" She rounded on Ruby as the tears started to overflow. "You've been sneaking out for _weeks_ and you don't tell me where you've gone! How do you think that makes me feel? You dunce..." Her voice cracked as she trailed off, closing her eyes and bowing her head as she tried to wipe her tears away.

Ruby felt as though she had just been kicked in the gut as she sent a dismayed look to her other two teammates. Blake and Yang looked just as surprised as she felt, but Ruby did hear Yang murmur, "Isn't that just so precious, though?"

Ruby was indeed flattered at the fact that Weiss would go so far as to weep in front of them all in a display of her concern for Ruby leaving her; quite truthfully, Ruby was touched.

She felt terrible now as she continued to hold her girlfriend's hand as Weiss choked on her sobs.

"Oh, Weiss..." Ruby stepped closer to her, but Weiss stepped back, whimpering. "Weiss, _please_ don't do this. Oh my god, what have I done?" She felt wretched enough about Weiss's misunderstanding, but Ruby could not help but be slightly amused.

Still, she knew it was cruel to let Weiss think she had been left behind, and Ruby wrapped her arms around her. "I'm sorry, Weiss. It's nothing like that. Tonight was the last night, okay? I'll tell you everything tomorrow, I promise. I won't leave you anymore. So please don't hate me."

Weiss's shoulders shuddered as she sniffed multiple times, shaking her head from side to side in an effort to dislodge the tears clinging to her cheeks.

"You..." She lifted her head, her mist-blue eyes drowning. "You _dunce_..." She gasped. "I could... never hate you. I thought you... you were..." Her breath hitched on another sob and could not continue.

"You thought I was cheating on you." Ruby understood. "And _god_ am I an idiot for not thinking about that. Trust me, I _never_ would have gone through with this if I'd known it would hurt you so much." She raised her hand to softly wipe the heiress's free-falling tears away. "I'm so sorry. But like I said, I'll tell you everything tomorrow, okay? You'll see."

She tucked a loose strand of alabaster hair behind Weiss's ear. "Besides, how could I ever even think about cheating on you? I love _you_, Weiss, and nobody else." She leaned down slightly and kissed Weiss's soft lips, proving the sincerity of her words and her affections.

And Weiss knew it was real. She had always known it was real. She just feared she would never be good enough to deserve it.

Weiss closed her eyes as she made an effort to kiss her partner back, stifling her sobs. Yang and Blake had witnessed the entire affair in silence, but just as Ruby felt a comment from her sister rising up, she sent a warning glare in her direction to silence her.

At last, Ruby pulled away, leaving Weiss blushing harder than before, her breaths small and clipped. "I'm sorry." Ruby apologized once again as she pulled her into another hug. Weiss took this opportunity to inhale several deep, shaky breaths in an effort to stop the tears. Ruby patted her back with warm hands until she calmed down. "You're freezing." She frowned. "Let's get you to bed."

Still holding her partner's hand, Ruby led her to her bed before crawling in beside her. Blake peeked over Yang's shoulder, sensing the immediate danger Weiss had threatened to her ears had passed.

"Well," Yang flipped over to face Blake. "Wasn't that just sickeningly sweet? Quite a display for Christmas Eve."

"Do you think Weiss even knows tomorrow is Christmas?" Blake murmured as Yang pulled her in.

"It doesn't look like it." The blonde smirked. "Which is what makes this all the more amusing. I can't wait to see the look on her face tomorrow!"

"It should be quite the spectacle." Her girlfriend agreed.

Blake nestled closer to Yang, seeking out her uncanny warmth, the warmth Blake had grown so accustomed to. Yang rested her chin atop Blake's head, the fur of her ears brushing against her cheeks.

"Soooo..." Yang hummed. "What did you get me for Christmas?"

"Nothing."

"What?!"

"Calm down." Blake chuckled. "Of course I'm joking. You'll find out tomorrow."

"Oh, fine..."

By this time, Ruby and Weiss had settled down in the heiress's bed, and Ruby flicked off the bedside lamp so that the silver moonlight provided the only glow.

Weiss sniffed one final time as Ruby pulled her in to her chest tightly. Weiss slid her arms around her girlfriend's torso, allowing her body to shake off the shivers she had been suppressing for so long. Even with the extra blanket on her bed, Weiss was still discomforted by the cold around her; only when Ruby laid beside her did she feel warm.

"I'm sorry, Weiss." Ruby whispered again, kissing her forehead.

"I get it." The heiress sighed. "Just make sure you tell me tomorrow."

"I will." Another kiss. "How could you ever think I could love anyone but you?"

"I was just scared..." Weiss murmured into her collar. "I didn't want to think about it."

"Well, you don't have to think about it anymore. I'm not leaving you, Weiss. Not ever."

Ruby felt her partner nod her head as her arms squeezed her tighter.

"Ruby...?"

"Yes?"

"I'm sorry... For doubting you..."

"Don't be." Ruby stopped her. "I didn't consider your feelings. _I'm_ sorry for making you cry."

"It's okay..." Weiss breathed. "Everything's okay now."

"Alright." Giving her one final kiss, Ruby closed her eyes.

She listened to Weiss's soft breathing until she fell asleep, the excitement and anticipation of the day to come already beginning to bubble in her stomach.

* * *

"'Lil sis! Princess! Time to rise and shiiine!"

"You guys had better hurry-"

"You've got five seconds until I jump!"

"Ruby, Weiss, she's serious."

"Four... three... two...!"

"Okay, Yang wait, we're up!" Ruby cried.

"_One_!"

Ignoring her sister's pleas, Yang launched herself horizontally onto their bed, effectively flattening the two girls underneath her.

"Oh... _god_, Yang!" Ruby wheezed.

"You... You colossal _oaf_!" Weiss coughed.

"I warned you." Blake said from where she still sat in her own bed. "She woke up first and crushed me, too."

Weiss was un-amused. "Listen, _Long_, you've got five seconds to remove yourself before I _blast_ you out the window into the chasms of no return."

"Fine, fine." Yang pushed herself up before rolling off the bed. "But seriously, you guys have _got_ to be more excited about today. It's-"

"Perhaps people like _you_ can get excited about a day without classes," Weiss snapped. "But for the rest of us, it's a day of wasted education." The timid, reclusive girl from last night had turned back into her usual, prickly self. As she spoke, her three teammates shared glances with one another. "What is it now?" Weiss demanded.

"I guess she really _doesn't_ know..." Yang muttered.

"What was that?"

"Nothing." The blonde waved her hand dismissively. "W-Well I guess I'll start getting breakfast ready." She announced, scurrying off to the other side of the room.

"What is wrong with her today?" The heiress grumbled.

"Weiss," Blake blinked up at her. "You don't know..."

"Don't know _what_? How can I be aware of what you're all talking about if no one _tells me_?" Remembering the predicament from the previous night, Weiss sent a glare at her girlfriend who was still sitting beside her.

"Never mind." Blake stood and followed after her partner.

"Ruby," Weiss sighed. "Why won't you tell-"

"You'll find out soon enough." Ruby stopped her. "I promised, didn't I?"

"...Yes, you did." Weiss puffed her cheeks out cutely. Ruby could not resist a chuckle as she leaned in to kiss her quickly.

"Don't worry." She gingerly ran her fingers through Weiss's loose hair. "Come on. Let's eat." She took her girlfriend's hand and pulled her to her feet.

Ruby stretched her arms up above her head as Weiss wandered over to the large window, moving the curtains to the side. The sunlight that filled the room was pale, but still made her squint, and Weiss immediately recognized what kind of weather would result in such lighting.

Blankets of crystal snow layered the world outside, covering the land in uniform white. The trees were black in stark contrast to the snow that dusted over their branches; the only splash of color visible was the distant hue of red in the Forest of ForeverFall.

Weiss stood a moment in silence to appreciate the beauty of the white world, the fresh snow yet untouched by man or Faunus. She felt Ruby slip up beside her. "Ooh, it's snowing!" She cheered.

"Really?" Yang's face lit up. "That's perfect!"

"Are you sure _you're_ the older sister?" Blake smirked.

"I don't understand why you're all so thrilled about snow today." Weiss crossed her arms. "It was fairly obvious that it would happen today. Didn't you see the clouds last night?"

"Nope, sorry." Yang shrugged. "_We_ weren't the ones staring out the window and pining for Ruby."

"I did not _pine_!" Weiss shrieked indignantly.

"Sure, sure." The blonde teased. "But anyway, it's _very_ important that it's snowing today, princess."

"And just why is that?"

"You'll find out."

Weiss narrowed her eyes, knowing she was being played with as the others refused to give her an explanation. But if Weiss knew anything by now, it was that her teammates could be irksomely silent whenever she wanted answers, their persistence sometimes on par with the heiress's own stubbornness.

She sighed loudly as she crossed the room, taking her seat at the table as the four of them prepared their cereal.

Even though she wore a long skirt and sweater, Weiss disliked the taste of the cold milk on winter mornings. Therefore, Ruby always took the liberty to make her tea for when she finished.

Presently, the team leader sifted through the cupboard where the heiress kept her tea, various flavors of the highest quality: Jasmine, Black, Herbal, Chamomile... But today Ruby made sure to prepare her favorite, Earl Grey.

Since her partner was going through the trouble of preparing her tea, Weiss ignored her own rumbling stomach and waited patiently until Ruby sat down beside her before she started eating. Weiss shivered against her will as she ate, and Ruby slid closer to her, pressing against her shoulder.

"How difficult would it be to provide us with some sort of fireplace?" The heiress mumbled.

"Aren't you forgetting we already have our own human furnace?" Blake twitched her ears sideways to indicate her partner.

"Hey, I'm not a furnace!" Yang complained. "I'm a lot softer!"

"And a lot louder." Weiss added, earning a giggle from Ruby.

The four of them enjoyed themselves as they ate, not pressured to rush to class for once.

"Ugh, I wish we'd slept in a little later." Ruby sighed as she retrieved Weiss's tea for her.

"We _could_ have, had your sister not _launched_ herself on top of us like that."

"Hey, you can't blame me." Yang stuck her tongue out. "You just can't sleep in on a day like today."

"Maybe we should tell Weiss now?" Blake suggested. "I think she's about to lose her mind."

"Oh, wait wait!" Ruby jumped to her feet again. "Not yet! I've gotta go get it!" She quickly slipped into her pink slippers before throwing her red bathrobe over her pajamas.

"Are you going across the hall again?" Blake wondered, her words causing Weiss to stiffen up.

"Yeah." Ruby replied. She halted when she noticed the forlorn look in Weiss's eyes as she looked up at her. Ruby's heart went out to her as she swiftly went to the heiress's side. Weiss flinched slightly as she leaned down. "I'll be right back." Ruby murmured, softly kissing her cheek.

With that, she zipped off through the door, leaving a few rose petals to flutter onto Weiss's lap. She must have looked as uncomfortable as she felt, because Blake placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Don't worry." She gave a small, reassuring smile. "You'll understand soon."

"Oh!" Yang perked up. "I need to get mine ready, too!" She darted over to their large, shared closet, burying her head into her side as she rummaged about. She pulled out three small wrapped boxes before crossing the room and sitting down in a space on the floor.

"Come on." Blake left Weiss's side, urging her to follow.

The Faunus girl curled her legs beneath her body as she sat beside her girlfriend. Weiss flicked her gaze toward them, then to the door where her own partner had left. She sighed, clutching the cup of hot tea Ruby had made for her as she stood and crossed the room to sit in front of her teammates. Puzzled, she quirked an eyebrow toward the three boxes Yang had brought.

"What exactly-"

"I'm baaack!"

Weiss jumped, nearly dropping her cup as a loud bang sounded from behind her.

Ruby pushed through the door which ended up bouncing back against the wall, and had her semblance not been speed, it would have smacked her in the face. In her arms were three boxes, all substantially larger than the ones Yang had, and one was particularly so.

"Ruby!" Weiss's voice was a mix of surprised and relieved; surprised at what she was carrying and relieved that she had not returned with some other person.

The heiress placed her cup onto the ground before rushing to her leader's side, steadying her arms so the stacked boxes would not topple.

"Thanks." Ruby grinned as Weiss helped her over to the others.

They sat down at last and Ruby let out a satisfied sigh. "Well, then," she beamed. "Are we ready?"

"I know I certainly am." Weiss picked up her warm cup once more. "Ready for you to tell me what all of this is about."

"Weiss," both sisters leaned in with their identical smiles plastered across their faces. "It's _Christmas_!" They announced proudly, Blake nodding and smiling slightly as well.

Weiss looked at her teammates as if they had all spurted extra limbs.

"What... is it, now?"

"WHAT?!" Ruby cried. "Okay, you've _got _to be kidding! I could have seen if you'd _forgotten_ about Christmas, but you're making it sound like you've never even _heard_ of it!"

"Well, how was I _supposed_ to react?" Weiss defended. "I never knew it was a real celebration! I only ever heard about it through fairy tales!"

"Are you _serious_?!" Yang was absolutely appalled. "That's just wrong!"

"Even the White Fang celebrated it, to some extent..." Blake mumbled under her breath.

"Well, _forgive me_ for being under the impression that it was a collective delusion shared by wishful storybook writers all my life." Weiss was unsure of how to react to something she had always thought as a dream actually being reality.

"You mean your family never celebrated it?" Yang sounded dismayed.

"Do you think we had _time_ for such trivial things?"

"Trivial..." Ruby repeated sadly, shifting closer to her. "Then what did you do on your birthday?"

Weiss was silent.

"Aw, Weiss!" Ruby threw her arms around her girlfriend with such force they both went tumbling to the floor; it was a miracle the heiress had managed to react quickly enough and safely put her cup down before crashing onto the carpet with her leader on top of her.

"Honestly, Ruby!" She huffed. "It's not that bad..."

"It _is_ that bad!" Ruby wailed.

"Ruby..." Weiss wanted to be annoyed at the blush she felt on her cheeks, but she simply could not bring herself to be irritated right now; Ruby was genuinely upset for her, and Weiss was touched.

The heiress managed to push herself up and Ruby along with her, patting her messy hair. "Okay, that's enough." Weiss murmured. "Instead of fretting over what I've missed out on in the past, why don't you show me a future to look forward to?"

She pretended Blake and Yang were not there for a minutes as she briefly kissed Ruby's cheek. Silver eyes sparkled as she hugged Weiss again.

"Of course I will!" Ruby beamed.

Yang utilized the chance when her sister and the heiress were occupied to sneak Blake a kiss as well.

When Ruby finally slid off of Weiss's lap, she happily declared. "Well then, let's get started, shall we?"

"With what?" Weiss tilted her head to one side curiously.

"The gift exchange, of course!" Yang filled her in.

"The... gift-?"

"Blake, why don't you go first?" The blonde's voice drowned out the perplexed heiress's inquiry.

"Sure." Blake leaned back to reach beneath her bed. "It's really not much." She pulled out three bundles of clothes all tied with black ribbons and passed one to each of her teammates. "I just did a little touching up, is all."

Weiss was baffled for a minute as Blake handed her her own blue nightgown; Weiss remembered commenting several weeks prior about how it was beginning to get beaten up, most likely due to Ruby's surprise attacks most nights.

As she unfolded it now, she noticed the hem had been re-sewn, and the rough, white ruffles on the sleeves had been replaced with softer material. It looked like an entirely new piece, and Weiss did not know how to react.

Ruby held her school uniform, which had recently been ripped at the sleeve when Ruby had gotten caught in a doorway. It had been mended with care and the cut was not even visible anymore.

Being the present gift-giver's girlfriend, Yang had received a new pair of pajamas altogether. Knowing better than anyone that Yang had a special condition with her unnaturally high body temperature, Blake had sewn her a new pair of shorts and a tank-top, made of much lighter material than her old ones. The blonde was overjoyed, to say the least.

"Oh my god! Did you make these yourself?!" She squealed. "They're so cute! Thank you so much, Blakey! You're the best!" Not unlike what her sister had just done to Weiss, Yang tackled Blake to the ground.

"You're welcome..." Blake coughed, smiling.

"So this was what you were doing in the middle of the night." Ruby realized. "I woke up a few times and saw your light on at the desk, but it didn't look like you were reading. And sometimes you didn't even use the light at all!"

"Just some benefits of being a Faunus." Blake noted. She hoisted Yang and herself back up into sitting positions.

"I'm gonna change right now!" Yang declared, slipping her arms to her chest.

"Don't do it here!" Blake chided, shooing her into the bathroom.

"It's not like its nothing you've never seen before..." The blonde muttered as she disappeared behind the door. Blake's cheeks burned red for a minute as Ruby laughed nervously.

Weiss remained silent, her mouth slightly ajar as she continued to stare down at her nightgown. She could picture Blake sitting in her bed in the middle of the night, hunched over as she sewed, not missing a single stroke.

She knew she needed to say something, but before she could manage, the bathroom door swung open as Yang stepped out in her new set of pajamas, tossing her old ones onto her bed.

"They're perfect!" Yang announced, plopping back down into her spot on the floor. "Lighter and a lot easier to move in, too! Thanks again!" She cupped her hands on either side of Blake's face and smooched her full on the lips; Ruby and Weiss blushed and averted their gazes.

When Yang had decided to let her girlfriend breathe again, she pulled away and clapped her hands together. "Alrighty! Looks like I'm next!"

She grabbed the three small boxes beside her and passed them out. The wrapping paper was a different color for each girl, but each had the same messy handwriting of their respective names on it.

Weiss tentatively pulled at the ribbon but was unsure of what to do about the paper. She glimpsed Ruby tearing into it while Blake ripped the corners first. Weiss carefully slipped a nail beneath the tape and gave a tug, unfolding it slowly and not making a single tear in the entire process until it was completely removed.

Staring back at her was a photograph of the four members of team RWBY, and Weiss instantly remembered the day it was taken. The very day after the teams had been officially formed, Ruby had asked Pyrrha to take the photograph of the four of them in their room, stating it would become a very precious memory in the future.

But what was even more notable than the aging photo was the picture frame it had been placed it; it had been hand-carved, that much was clear, and skillfully so.

Weiss's was painted a sparkling silver-white, and the designs flowing around it were very detailed carvings of snowflake-like shapes, along with the occasional flower.

Ruby's red picture frame depicted mostly floral designs, but was more jagged than those on Weiss's; the heiress thought it suited Ruby quite well.

Blake's picture frame had understandably been given the most attention, as it was black and hinted with shades of dark purple. There was a combination of the styles found on the other two frames in Blake's, and the colors blended expertly in with the petals of the carved flowers

"Wow..." Blake breathed. "Yang, this is gorgeous. Thank you."

"And I guess this explains why you kept disappearing during lunch time." Ruby reasoned.

"Yup!" Yang nodded. "I had one of the professors help me out with the cutting, but I did it all myself!"

"It's so artistic." Blake commented. "I never knew that side of you existed."

"I don't usually put too much effort into art," Yang admitted. "But this was for you guys so..." She grinned. Blake moved in to kiss her cheek to display her gratitude.

Weiss opened her mouth again, trying to find the right words to say to show her appreciation, but she was too late.

"Okay! My turn!" Ruby straightened up.

She passed the two smaller boxes, which were each a little longer than a foot across and in height, to Blake and her sister. She slid the largest box over to Weiss, her silver eyes alight with excitement.

Weiss's mouth still hung open from what she had wanted to say to Blake and Yang before her, but she closed it as she accepted the gift from her leader.

Taking care not to tear this paper either, it took the heiress a bit longer to open the box than it did for the others.

"Wow!" Yang was impressed as she pulled out a large yellow pillow, orange swirls spiraling around it. "It's perfect, sis! I needed a new one!"

"Because your old one was beginning to smell like drool." Blake teased, admiring the purple designs on her own black pillow. "Did you make these all by yourself, Ruby?"

"Well... the pillows were easy enough, especially the stuffing part..." She admitted. "But what took me two weeks was..."

"Oh..." Weiss spoke up for the first time in a while now as she finally unwrapped her present.

Weiss had also received a pillow from Ruby, hoary and dusted with shades of blue. But the thing that took her breath away was the beautiful blanket that had been crocheted for her. It was snowy white and made of the softest material Weiss had ever felt, and briefly she wondered where Ruby had come across it. Tiny blue snowflakes danced around the rim of the blanket running all the way around the perimeter of the entire thing. But the intricate detail did not stop there, as the star-like shapes stretched out toward the middle where they expanded; when spread out in its entirety, the design of a much larger snowflake was visible.

"That's where I was the past few nights." Ruby explained. "I asked team JNPR to let me work in there since it'd be kind of out in the open if I made it in here. I know you really like the snow, but not so much the cold, so... this was the result." Ruby gave a little shrug as she smiled.

"Ruby..." Weiss's voice was thin, baffled. She turned her head around to meet Yang's lavender gaze, and Blake's golden one before she returned to silver. "Yang... Blake... I..." The heiress felt her words hitch in her throat. "I... I don't know what to say..."

"Weiss?" Ruby frowned as she realized she was about to cry. "H-Hey, Weiss!" Scrambling over to her partner, Ruby rested a hand on her shoulder. "What's the matter?"

"I..." Weiss began to hiccup. "You all... went through so much trouble... and I... I didn't do anything for you..." Frustration made her eyes burn and she sniffed.

Ruby flashed a panicked look at the other two, who were also concerned. Blake slid over to pat the heiress's shaking back as Yang placed a warm palm on her other shoulder.

"Oh, Weiss, it's okay!" Ruby soothed. "How could you have known? You didn't even know Christmas was _real_ until today!" She was still incredulous about that fact. "Of course it's okay! There's no way you could have known! It's fine if you didn't get us anything. It's _fine_..." She pulled Weiss in to her in an effort to calm her bitter weeping.

"You..." The heiress gasped. "You all did so much... and I did nothing... I'm supposed to be your best teammate..."

"Weiss..." All three of them spoke her name.

"It's fine."

"Don't worry about it."

"Please don't cry."

Her teammates continued to offer soothing words as they smiled hopelessly at one another; despite the cold exterior she so often displayed around others, Weiss was nothing but a soft-hearted girl to them.

"I'll... I'll make it up to you all..." Weiss declared as she lifted her head from Ruby's shoulder, sniffling again. "We may not have known much about Christmas... but my family knew plenty about New Year's, and I promise I'll make it up to you then."

"Weiss, you don't have to-"

"Don't try to stop me." She pouted at her leader. Ruby blinked once before letting out a hopeless sigh.

"Fine." She caved. "Once you say you're going to do something, there's no changing your mind." Ruby gently brushed the tears off of Weiss's cheeks before kissing her softly.

Yang sighed happily as she leaned over to her girlfriend.

"I still can't believe she's such a crybaby."

"Yeah." Blake whispered back. "But it's adorable."

"Yes it is."

Once Weiss had calmed down, she made sure to properly thank Blake and Yang for their gifts as well.

"Don't mention it." Blake smiled.

"I'm glad you liked it, princess!" Yang crushed her into a hug.

Once she let her go, the four girls stood and began to clean up the wrapping paper strewn across the floor.

"Well," Yang cleared her throat importantly. "Since I took the liberty of waking everyone up so early this morning, what say you guys to a little nap on our snowy day off?" Her jaws parted in a huge yawn.

"Leave it to Yang to get tired after a few hours of doing nothing." Weiss mumbled. "But I think it would be nice to... test these out." She motioned toward their collection of pillows.

"Agreed." Blake scooped up her pillow and exchanged it with her old one. Yang placed her own pillow onto her bed, but had full intentions to share her girlfriend's for the time being.

Weiss, too replaced her old pillow, returning Yang's borrowed comforter to its owner as Ruby helped spread Weiss's new blanket across her bed.

Then, they each set up their picture frames Yang had made for them near their personal belongings on shelves and desks around the room. Weiss retreated into the bathroom to change into her blue nightgown that Blake had fixed for her.

"Won't you be cold?" The Faunus wondered, her ears twitching slightly.

"I think I'll manage." Weiss smiled in return, looking over her shoulder to where Ruby sat patiently on her new white bedspread.

Blake retreated to her own bed as Yang flung herself down beside her. "Well, all things considered," the blonde sighed. "I think that was a very successful Christmas."

"Don't forget it isn't over yet." Blake reminded her. "Unless of course you plan to nap until tonight." She sighed as well as she slipped under the covers, moving close to Yang who pulled her in tightly.

"Merry Christmas, Blake."

"Merry Christmas, Yang."

They shared a long kiss, soft lips colliding with slightly rougher ones. Then, they pressed their foreheads together, Blake running her hands through a messy, golden mane as Yang pressed up against her collar and let out a blissful sigh.

"I could get used to this."

"It's called nighttime, Yang." Blake chuckled.

In the meantime, Weiss slipped under her blankets as Ruby burrowed beside her. She snuggled in to press her lips to Weiss's, and the heiress kissed back gently. Ruby happily noted that Weiss was no longer shivering from the cold, and she wrapped her arms around her shoulders, bringing her close.

"Merry Christmas, Weiss." Ruby said quietly.

"M...Merry?" She repeated. "Why is that?"

"I dunno. It's just what everyone says." Her leader shrugged.

Ruby moved her hands up and down Weiss's back, running her fingers slowly through her long, alabaster tresses. The heiress returned the gesture, playfully coiling Ruby's soft hair around her fingertips as she combed through it.

"Thank you, Ruby." Weiss murmured. "For putting so much time and effort into my gifts. And all that time I was doubting you..."

"Stop worrying." Ruby chided, tightening her embrace.

"I'm going to make it up to you on New Year's." Weiss reminded her. "You'd best not forget that."

"I won't." Ruby reassured her.

"But... I want to do something for you now. I want to give you something..."

"Weiss," Ruby made sure to meet her mist-blue eyes as she spoke. "Just your being here with me is more than I could _ever_ ask for." She gently kissed her forehead.

"...It's the same for me." Weiss pressed her lips against Ruby's cheek before nestling into her shoulder.

"I love you, Weiss." Ruby whispered, relishing the warmth that wreathed around her. Weiss felt the same warmth blessing her heart, and she let out a light breath as she closed her eyes.

"Thank you, Ruby. I'll never forget this day. I love you, too."

* * *

**A/N: Okay, so I know it was far-fetched to have Weiss not even know Christmas was real but I'm not changing anything now so too bad. Also, I thought it would be interesting to write Weiss not being immune to cold for once.**

**Merry Christmas to all! I'll have another White Rose fic for you tomorrow, anyway! And see you next week for the New Year's fic!**

**Please review!**


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